Music Box
by lewdness
Summary: Riku hates Andalasia. And squirrels. And princes who think he's a girl, but it's dresses that he hates most of all. Chapter 2 up!
1. Chapter 1

So uh, this is my baby right now. My favorite thing, as of this moment, though it'll change like…tomorrow, probably. I'm just happy that it turned out the way it did and that it didn't take a year to write. It was hard and it was easy at the same time, hah, but still. I'm really happy.

Thanks to my beta, who is eloquent and amazing, and hope you guys enjoy.

_Life inside the music box ain't easy_

_The malots that hit the gears are always turning_

_And everyone inside the mechanism_

_Is yearning to get out._

-Music Box, by Regina Spektor

At eighteen, Sora believed he could finally rest. They'd been home for the better part of a year and a half, content to try and regain some kind of a semblance of the life they had once had, before the Keyblades, the castles, the Heartless. Riku had been skittish and distant at first, but nearly a year later he was sitting on the tree beside Kairi, their fingers loosely intertwined while Sora stood before them, leaning against the tree they were sitting on. He tilted his head back and grinned up at them. "It's perfect." In the comforting blanket of warmth, the sound and smell of the ocean, they both could not help but agree.

--

Panting for a breath Kairi scrambled up the hill past Tidus and Wakka playing blitzball, ignoring Selphie calling her name, to where she could see the glint of bright silver hair by their tree. The conversation the two teens had been having cut off abruptly, Sora's eyes wide as he reached out to touch her shoulder and ask what was wrong only to find a bottle shoved in his face. For a brief moment, he was sure his heart stopped. The King's seal usually meant one thing and he didn't want anything to do with it. Against his will he found his hand reaching out and taking the bottle from his friend, popping the cork off and sliding his fingers under the seal.

"What's it say?" Kairi asked, her voice still breathy as she leaned on his shoulder to see the letter. Still silent, Riku did the same on Sora's other side, their eyes all scanning over the careful, flowing script. "Oh no."

_Sora,_

_First and foremost, I'm sorry that the way we are finally contacting you needs to be with such grave news; I feel as if I should come right out and say it and simply get to the point. King Mickey, as of a few days ago, has passed away. Please, if you could come to the castle, many things will be explained to you. In two days time, Donald and Goofy will be coming to pick you up; the Princess Kairi may also accompany if you so desire. _

_-Queen Minnie_

Sora was still staring hard at the letter when he felt Riku slowly back up. In a second, the letter was on the ground and Sora was staring up at the taller teen, his face stern. "You're coming, too."

"You read the letter, Sora, it's addressed to you an-"

"You," Sora annunciated clearly and precisely, "are coming. With us. I don't care what you say, but you are. We're not just going to leave you behind, Riku."

Kairi nodded, reaching out and taking one of his hands. "We promised, remember?"

Riku nodded quietly, vaguely touched at how the friendship between them had instantly overridden a death, even one as important as the King's. "Alright."

--

Packing in secret proved to be harder than Sora thought as he stuffed the last shirt into his bag, glancing around his room for anything else that he might need. It had been decided early that they would not waste time on having a longer conversation with their parents about this; a note would have to do or else they would never be allowed out of their rooms.

The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs didn't register with him right away as he bent down and tried to find one of his shoes that were under his bed. The sound of the door opening did and he shot up, eyes wide and holding one shoe behind his back.

"…You…you're packing. Why are you packing?" his mother asked quietly, her eyes sweeping over his half-empty room. "_Sora_, what's going on? Why are you packing all of your clothes up? Your shoes…"

Mouth working but no sound coming out, Sora floundered for a response, his fingers tightening their grasp on his boots. When she saw the note sitting on his shelf he couldn't stop her from going to pick it up; he could only jam his shoe into the bag and bite his lip as he tried to figure out what to do. "Mom- I-"

"You're leaving," she said weakly, the note fluttering to the ground like a dead bird. Sora's stomach rolled at the tears that were shining in his mother's eyes but he curled his hand around the straps to one of his bags anyway. "You wouldn't even tell us that you- you were just leaving? _Again_?"

"Mom, I don't have a choice, I have a _duty_. And I know I didn't explain everything; I can't and neither can the other two, no matter how much you may want us to. I'm…I'm really sorry." He took a few steps forward hesitantly hugging his mother loosely and couldn't help but notice how much taller he was now; had it really been that long since he'd noticed? "We'll try to come back."

His mother was clinging tightly to him as if she thought that holding him would make him stay but it only forced him to gently pry her fingers away and back away as much as possible. "I'm really sorry, I wish I didn't have to go." And he really, really didn't because he was happy here, happy with the calm life on the islands, happy with the life that meant there would be no fighting other than the spar and roughhousing with the other boys on the beach. He would be leaving all of that behind and he really didn't want to but there was a duty he had and he wouldn't let them down. "'Bye," he finally managed, because nothing else seemed appropriate. There would be no, 'I'll be back, I promise!' Because none of them knew if they would be coming back or not.

The older woman tried to grab him, choking out a shaky version of his name, but he only slid away and fled down the stairs, wishing he was deaf so he could ignore the crying he heard so clearly. His father was dozing off on the couch, obviously not aware his wife was in tears upstairs, though he woke up slightly at the thunder of feet coming down the stairs. "Sora? You going out?"

Sora froze for half a second, swallowing hard and then bolting, calling out a, "Sorry!"

His bags were heavy, but he had expected no less from the amount of things he had packed, unsure about how long they would be staying. Years of running and fighting had kept him in shape and this coupled with his ability to quick run left him standing on the beach where Kairi was already waiting, sitting on one of her own bags, shading her eyes from the falling sun. "My parents- my mom," he panted, glancing over his shoulder as if expecting them to be right there. "They caught me; they might try to tell yours or Riku's."

Kairi's eyes widened as she turned her attention to the narrow path through the bushes to the beach, relieved when she saw Riku coming at the exact time Sora breathed a sigh of relief. "I can see the ship."

The ship hovered over the ocean for a moment, Riku coming to stand behind Sora as they all shielded their eyes against the flurry of sand that stirred when the brightly colored ship landed, four pronged legs coming out to cushion its landing. The moment the doors opened and the two occupants stepped out, Sora bolted forward to hug the knight and the court magician as tightly as he could, laughing quietly when Donald protested half-heartedly and Goofy ruffled his hair.

"We need go soon," Donald said after he had separated himself from the brunet. A moment later when he caught sight of Kairi, he bowed and Goofy followed a little clumsily, obviously not used to walking in near-slippery sand. Instead of any sort of formal greeting as he had given the other two, the duck's eyes narrowed when he caught sight of the tall teen with bright silver hair. "We only have room for two."

All glanced to the overly-large gummi ship. Goofy raised a hand to protest, but Sora was already there stepping quickly in-between the duck and Riku, his eyes oddly hard. "There's plenty of room, Donald, and I know it. I've been on this ship- helped build them," he said, his voice quiet but heard by all perfectly. "We made a promise to never again leave each other behind and I'm not going to abandon that just because you have a problem with him. It's all or nothing."

Donald ruffled his feathers and made a displeased noise, but turned to the side and gestured for them to get into the gummi ship. It didn't take long for them to get settled; both Riku and Kairi took the back part of the ship, the former slouched in one of the empty chairs, his feet propped up on a small gummi block. Kairi kicked her sandals off and propped her feet up on his legs, grinning at him as if nothing was wrong, like they weren't leaving their homes once more. Meeting warm lilac eyes, Riku found a hesitant smile curling his own lips, more so when Sora finished talking to the two animals and the engines rumbled with life.

Dragging a hand through his messy hair, Sora jumped when he felt two small hands wrap around one of his belts, pulling him a few feet to where Kairi was sitting. "Happy faces," she said mock-sternly, laughing quietly when Sora sighed heavily and flopped carefully onto her lap, making sure to keep most of his actual weight off her. Dropping a casual kiss down on her lips, he sprawled a little more over top of her, sighing loudly. "Oof, Sora, you big oaf, go sit on Riku!"

"Kairi, that's just…" Sora brushed away a fake tear and stood up with a huff, making his way over to where Riku sat. Shrugging at the suggestion, Riku held out a hand and smiled when Sora sat sideways on his lap and wrapped his arms around the older teen's neck. "She's right," the aqua-eyed boy teased, his voice low. "You're getting heavy, maybe you should-"

"Stop moving around so much back there!" Donald squawked, glaring back at the three teens. "You're going to make me crash the ship!"

Sora peeked his head out around the corner, the warm weight of one of Riku's hands coming to rest on his hip to keep him from falling. "You're the best gummi ship driver around here, Donald, I know we won't crash."

The muffled rustle of feathers and smug noise made Kairi roll her eyes and Sora smile innocently, relaxing against Riku. The redhead girl shifted in her seat a little bit, leaning against one of the walls as she tried to doze off in hopes of sleeping until they got to the castle. Riku was still and quiet, Sora content to trail his fingers gently across his neck and play with the zipper on the white and yellow vest. "Ri," Sora began softly, resting his head on Riku's shoulder so no one else could hear the conversation. "Are you okay?"

_There. _The question that they had all avoided up until this point. It was well known that he and the King had been through so much together, the latter of which saving Riku from the darkness' hold multiple times. "It's hard to think that he's dead, you know?" Riku said, his voice just as quiet. Both of his hands looped around Sora's waist, fingers intertwining to rest on one of the brunet's hips. "I can't… He helped me so much and…"

Sora nodded, wishing there was something, anything that he could do to make things better, but even he couldn't reverse time or death. "I'm sorry."

Riku didn't respond instantly; instead he pressed his lips to Sora's temple and found himself whispering, "Sora… he died because the darkness ate at his heart. Who's to say that the same thing won't-"

"I won't _let it_," Sora hissed, tilting his head up and digging his fingers into Riku's shoulder, his eyes flashing. "Riku, I won't. I won't, I won't, I won't, I wo-."

Lips pressed gently onto his, halting the furious rush of words. "I won't, Riku."

Silently Riku nodded again, not willing to say that it was entirely possible and no amount of protesting would change anything.

--

The moment they had begun to dock, Sora had gotten off of Riku's lap and headed to the front of the ship, watching as it slowly floated into the small inlet specifically made for it. Cracking his back when he stretched, Sora pressed the button that opened the cabin door, grabbing Kairi's bags along with one of his and taking them out before she could protest. Donald and Goofy followed her, the former snorting dryly when the princess used her bag to hit Sora for carrying her things when she was perfectly able to do so herself.

Distantly, Donald realized that he was happier than he had first thought; the two brought a much-needed sense of brightness to the shadow of grief that had fallen over the castle. The last one, however… Donald scowled, blatantly ignoring the dark Keyblade master. It didn't matter if their King and Sora had trusted him; there was always the fact that he had tried to kill all of them and it would take more than a few offhand affirmations that he wouldn't turn on them in an instant.

It was nightfall at Disney Castle, the only lights coming from the brightly lit torches reflecting off the polished white of the entire castle; even Chip and Dale didn't seem to be out this late. Entering the castle, all were quiet until a regally dressed rabbit approached, scanning over them with a quick move, his nose twitching. "I assume these are the guests?" he asked, his voice just as stiff and proper as the rest of him seemed to be.

"Ahyuck, this is Sora, Kairi, and Riku," Goofy said, smiling back at all of them.

The rabbit's eyes widened at the mention of two familiar names, abruptly bowing down and then straightening as he adjusted the suit-top he wore. "Forgive me, Keyblade Master, Princess," he said, his voice oddly humble. "I had not realized who you were. You are most welcome here." His eyes slid from the two to the oddly quiet teen and instantly the name registered. "And your…guest, as well."

Uncomfortable, Sora offered a tentative smile and nodded, not quite used to the respect that seemed to generate whenever he walked around now that everyone knew what his name meant. "Thank you," he returned, hoping his voice didn't show how utterly tired and just how unsure he was about what to say in return.

"It's getting late," Donald said, crossing his wings. "Maybe you could show them to their rooms and we can explain everything later."

"Of course." The rabbit bowed again, turning around and then pausing. "But, I was aware of only two visitors coming, I can have a room in the lower hall prepared for-"

"It's fine, you don't have to worry about it, Riku can room with me," Sora interceded quickly, ignoring the startled looks he got from some. The lower hall was most likely just what it sounded like and the last thing he needed was for Riku to have to deal with that kind of attitude, not when he didn't deserve it. "It's easier, for everyone."

The rabbit looked vaguely uncomfortable but unwilling to argue; he settled for nodding and gesturing for them to follow. Quiet goodnights were thrown back and forth from four of them, Riku nodding to the two animals and feeling slightly better when Goofy gave him a smile and a wave- he ignored the scowl and glare Donald sent him. None of them could hold back the sense of relief that came when the two side-by-side rooms were shown to them, along with the private baths that connected to both rooms. With a final vaguely disapproving look, the rabbit informed them that at eight in the morning they would meet in the main room for breakfast and explanations with Queen Minnie.

Kairi said goodnight to both boys, accepting a hug and kiss from Sora and catching Riku by the wrist before he could follow the other boy. Startled blue-green eyes met her own. "Riku, you need to believe us when we say that we won't leave you, okay?" She pulled him close and hugged him gently, relieved when it only took a split second for him to return the gesture. "We promised."

It was kind of funny, he mused, content to take in the light, flowery scent she had. It had only taken a few words and he felt like this might be okay, as long as he had them. Riku nodded, squeezing her one final time and then pulling back with that shadow of a smile she had grown used to seeing. "See you in the morning," he said quietly, pausing once more before they were in their rooms fully. "And Kai? Thanks." When the redhead girl flashed him a pleased look he ducked into his and Sora's room, unable to push aside the nagging doubt that something would go wrong here in the castle of white walls and full of people who he had wronged.

Sora had thrown his bag into one of the corners and was already exploring the extravagant room, taking note of the extra door that lay in the wall between their room and Kairi's own. Turning the handle a little, he found it locked- something he probably should have expected. The brunet snorted quietly, summoning the Keyblade in an instant and aiming it at the keyhole, turning it just so and hearing the lock click open. Opening the door, he peeked into Kairi's room and grinned wryly at her when she stared at him. "Keyblade," he said sheepishly, turning the now unlocked doorknob a few times for emphasis. "Sorry."

"Oh, right. Let me get changed and I'll be in, in a moment." Kairi moved over to the bed, setting out the clothes she had brought along and organizing them quickly. "Think they're worried about my womanly virtue?"

Sora snorted quietly, closing the door a little so she would have some privacy while she changed.

In the other room, he glanced at the bags and at the bed, deciding that the unpacking could wait until morning when he didn't feel so exhausted. Kicking off his shoes, he pulled his over shirt over his head and began working on the belts on his pants, leaving him in socks, his boxers and a plain white undershirt. Kairi entered a moment later wearing one of Riku's shirts and simple shorts, closing the door halfway behind her and heading to the bed where Sora had already sprawled out with one arm thrown over his eyes. "You're taking up the whole bed," Kairi pointed out dryly, poking him in the side. Making a muffled noise of realization, Sora moved to the middle of the bed, feeling the mattress dip down as Kairi joined him.

Riku glanced over to the bed and then turned his eyes out the window, trying to ignore the nasty voices that were pointing out all the things that could and probably would go wrong. Refusing to think of it anymore at that time, he walked over to where Sora and Kairi were already curled in the sheets, half-asleep with exhaustion. It took only a moment for Riku to shed his unnecessary clothing and slip into bed with the other two, draping an arm over Sora's slender waist and sighing when the warm body curled close to him. Slim fingers slid up and intertwined with his- Kairi's- and at least for a little while, he was comfortable.

--

Minnie didn't look anything like the cheerful mouse queen that Sora had first met when he'd helped save the castle. This Minnie was quiet and composed considering what happened, wearing not her fluffy pink and white dress but a simple black and white lace one. The four of them had only picked at their breakfast until Minnie suddenly sighed and drew her eyes up to the bright blue ones of Sora. "I have a request to make of you, Sora." She glanced at the other two. "All of you, actually."

"As you know, Mickey was king of this castle as well as being a Keyblade Master which also had a set of responsibilities. He helped keep peace and order in multiple worlds, fighting the Darkness until the time where he and Riku became locked in Kingdom Hearts. His heart was something that the Heartless themselves were thirsting for and instead of being able to get it, they simply infected him in a way. The Darkness eventually just ate away at him enough to the point where he was too weak to go on." Minnie paused, her fingers fumbling for a tissue to wipe her eyes. "He never got a chance to tell you the…well, the sort of guidelines or precedents that have been passed down since anyone could remember. You're so young, all of you."

"We're supposed to take his place," Sora whispered, his fingers clenching his napkin tightly. "Or at least I am. I'm the first Keyblade master and it's my duty to keep it safe, isn't it." It wasn't a question; he knew where this conversation was headed and already knew what his answer would be. It was in that moment that he realized he would have to break the promise he had always spoke so much about- Riku and Kairi would have to return to the Islands, they deserved the life that they had all tried to have and keep. He wouldn't allow himself to take that away from them.

"You don't need to answer me now, Sora," Minnie assured, straightening her shoulders in an attempt to regain control of herself. "I know it's a tough-"

Before he could try to talk himself out of it, he spoke. "I'll do it. I've already got all of my stuff here; I'll stay. I want a ride home for-"

"For who?" Kairi and Riku asked at the same time, both staring at their friend as if he'd lost his mind. "You don't honestly think we'll let you just leave us, or leave you behind. It's all or nothing, Sora, remember?"

Sora swallowed hard. Part of him was glad that he would have company because he was human and he liked to be selfish every once in a while. Another part of him wished there was a way to convince them to leave; they wouldn't be happy here in the castle where they had to dress up and grow older even quicker. They belonged on the beach, playing games and going to sleepovers, not sitting in meetings and trying to fight for their lives all over again.

--

Life in the castle after two weeks and Mickey's funeral had grown somewhat normal. In the mornings, Sora would go with someone, either to train, to learn proper etiquette, or something equally boring. After that, he would go to lunch with his friends who had done something else that day and then it was back to work.

At night he would arrive to either Riku in his room with Kairi, or both in the redhead's room. One particular night Sora trudged to his room kicking off his shoes into the corner and instantly curling up on the bed next to where Kairi was sitting with her back against the headboard and her legs stretched out. Riku was sitting next to her, thumbing through his own book and glancing over at hers every once in a while when she laughed. The moment Sora walked in and curled up on the bed without a word, the book Kairi had been reading was dropped on the ground as she wrapped her arms around the brunet teen carefully, combing her fingers through his hair as she tried to figure out what was wrong. Riku had put his own book on the small dresser, his face just as questioning as Kairi's was. He leaned over and brushed his fingertips across Sora's cheek, watching Kairi continue her soothing movements of brushing her fingers through the brunet's hair.

"Sora? Sora, what happened?" Kairi asked, her concern obvious. The strain of this entire setup must have gotten to him, she figured, and the stubborn idiot wouldn't tell them anything; he always grinned and told them that everything was fine. Evidently it wasn't.

"Apparently, it's bad news to hear that there's a teen taking over the place of Mickey, even if he's the Keyblade master. Rumors have been going around the worlds that their lives are in the control of a teen in foolish puppy-dog love, or under a spell, with Maleficent's last knight. They think that he's holding Kairi prisoner beneath my nose and manipulating the both of us." Sora growled a curse under his breath and snuggled closer to the two, their warmth comforting. "There'll be an official coronation to finalize it, in five weeks. Delegates from almost every world will be sent to judge us-_me_ and gods above; I'm not ready for this." He drew in a deep breath, surprised when he felt the bed shift as Riku got off of it though it was only to walk around it and go to the other side and sit down so he was between them. "What do they expect me to do about this? Donald and Goofy are even acting like they're worried about this 'cause they know that everyone is just waiting for me to fail, waiting for me to make a mistake and…"

"Sora, you don't need to worry, okay?" Kairi assured, making him meet her eyes. The nervous and uncertain look in his eyes made her sigh heavily and try to think about what she was going to say to try and convince him, or at the very least assure him that everything was going to turn out alright. "Everything is going to be fine; you're the Keyblade's chosen one. It wouldn't have chosen you if you weren't strong enough, remember? You have the strongest heart out of all of us, you're the original one and we're here to help you with whatever you end up doing."

"She's right," Riku added confidently, his voice a low murmur of reassurance. As Sora laid there, the comforting feel and smell of his two closest friends all around him, he tried to keep his mind away from the worst case-scenario which was quickly turning into the most possible one.

--

The coronation was probably going to take all day, he was informed. It would begin with the guests all coming in and those who would be staying for the night would be shown their rooms. The invitations had been sent out to all of the worlds, so there was no way of knowing exactly who was or who wasn't going to show up so almost every one of the rooms was prepared.

There had been the long process of being fitted for new clothes; no matter how much Sora had thought that his normal clothes would do, he was informed that if he were to become royalty then he was to dress like it. Kairi and Riku, Minnie had said with a small smile, would be suffering the same fate. That had earned her a little laugh from the brunet teen, though he instantly quieted when the mouse fitting his clothes poked him in the side and told him to stop moving.

Riku and Kairi were in similar rooms, the former standing still and straight, his face perfectly blank as the quiet rabbit-seamstress he had been assigned worked quickly. Obviously she had been informed of who he was as well from the shy and ginger way she adjusted his clothes, her voice quiet and never meeting his eyes. Somehow, he found he wasn't able to get angry with her; he'd expected it, because he knew about his reputation and exactly what his name meant to all of the other worlds. She wasn't as rude as some of the other people here had been, which was a small blessing, but all the same he found that he wished there was something he could do to prove he wasn't going to suddenly attack them all.

Kairi yelped as a needle poked her in the thigh, laughing quietly when the slender cat squeaked and apologized profusely, staring down at the ground. "It's okay, really," the redhead assured, placing a hand on the cat's shoulder and smiling warmly. "It looks like it'll be a lovely dress."

The seamstress's bright gold eyes widened and then a smile found its way to her face as she continued stitching a line of silvery thread to tie together the silver and purple silk. "I hope the princess finds this to her liking?" She inquired softly.

"Oh, no." Kairi shook her head and then froze when she realized what that must have sounded like. "Oh! No, I mean, it looks lovely, but don't call me princess. I hate how everyone does that, it's just Kairi. But the dress does look amazing."

The cat nodded, offering a slightly warmer and more confident smile at the girl's words. "Kairi, then?"

Nodding, the girl stretched her arms up when prompted and smiled at the ceiling, thinking that things might turn out okay after all.

--

Mouth dry, Sora examined Riku carefully, lingering on how the clothes fit him perfectly and hugged every inch of his body. The dark colors suited him perfectly, the contrast from his fair skin and silver hair to the dark colors of his clothes making him seem that much more handsome. "Gods, Riku, you look…" He stepped forward, reaching out to smooth his hands over Riku's chest, slipping down to hold slender hips. "Yeah. You look amazing."

A quiet laugh escaped the older teen as he hugged Sora to him, resting his chin on top of spiky hair. "So do you. The blue suits you." Riku sighed heavily and nuzzled into brown locks. Content to stay there for a long moment, he wondered if he should say anything about what had been circulating around the castle. Chances were that Sora already knew about it, but there was the question of if he didn't, what would happen when the brunet found out. Sighing again for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, he realized that if Sora found out in a roundabout way from someone else, he would be more irritated that Riku hadn't told him in the first place. "They've given me a new nickname, you know."

The quiet, almost resigned tone to his friend's voice made Sora blink and try to pull away a little to see Riku's face. "Oh really?"

"Yeah." Riku stroked his fingers up and down Sora's back, listening to the soft, pleased noise that escaped the shorter teen. "I'm your dark knight. Kairi is your princess and I've been dubbed your dark knight."

Stiffening slightly at the quiet, resentful tone, Sora struggled a little more and placed both of his hands on Riku's cheeks making them face each other. "Riku." He shook his head, meeting Riku's moody blue-green eyes. "Don't listen to them. Don't listen to any of them, okay? They aren't the ones who are making the decisions- it's my choice to keep you here and-"

Riku's eyes narrowed at the implied meaning that he didn't have a choice of if he stayed or went. "Don't get too comfortable with your position as King, Sora," he bit out angrily, making to move back. The last thing he needed was for Sora to think that _he_ controlled if they were there or not. It had been a promise but Sora didn't have a right to act as if he were king over the two of them as well, not when they were friends.

Sora looked startled for a moment, mentally running over what he had just said and then shaking his head quickly. "No, Riku, that's not what I mean by that; I'm sorry, I should have…" he trailed off. "I know I'm not your master or anything. I was trying to say that they aren't the ones whose opinions about my friends matter. Dark knight, Keyblade master, castle clown, _whatever_, you're still my best friend and you will always be, no matter what some pompous, no-name royalty tries to say."

Still silent, Riku tried to calm or at the very least, slow down his chaotic thoughts enough to function without getting a headache. He'd always admired that Sora could see only the good in people and that he figured there was a bright side to everything, but at this point he couldn't help but look at the boy as naïve.

--

Just as expected, there were hundreds of people milling about, offering condolences to the queen and congratulations along with that, to Sora himself. He'd tried his best to meet with at least every group of people scattered about the great hall; he didn't want to think about what would happen if he didn't at least make an appearance- someone might take offense to that and it was one more headache he really didn't need. Kairi had trailed around with him for the first few minutes before going off with a group of girls her own age, all clothed in similar fancy clothes and practically dripping with shiny jewelry.

Riku had followed him just as carefully, every inch the knight he had been dubbed, as he scanned the crowds and kept an eye on Sora while keeping to the least populated areas. There were cautious glances and whispered conversations about him, but he had expected it already so he simply was content to watch as the brunet talked with people, smiling, nodding and generally being as amicable as possible.

A few moments later, Sora moved onto another group of people, starting up yet another conversation that seemed to be going well enough.

Riku took a few more steps, glancing about the room until he found Kairi nodding and smiling politely at something the other girls were laughing about, some of them holding half-full glasses of one of the drinks, others sprawled in some of the chairs. Turning his attention back to his other friend, he blinked when he noticed the forced smile on Sora's face, along with the careful blankness of his expressive blue eyes. About to make his way forward and see what was wrong, he was stopped by a quick shake of Sora's head, just enough to let him know Sora didn't want him to interfere just yet- if at all.

"But the rumors, Sora," a tall man with brown hair vaguely streaked with gray said. While almost every other person Sora had encountered had spoke to him with some form of respect, be it "Master Sora" or "Keyblade Master", this man had been blunt and frank, almost mocking in the friendly way he instantly addressed Sora. "You're so very…young. And while the King's passing is sudden and a great loss, I hardly, no, excuse me. Do you believe that you are fully…capable, of taking over such a high position? Regardless of if you've saved the worlds or not, at heart you are still just a child. A child, who, if the rumors do not deceive me, is consorting with a perhaps…less than desirable company."

Inwardly bristling at the implications, Sora willed himself to keep at least a tight smile on his lips and a civil tone to his voice. "I assure you, sir, that I understand that I've been given a great responsibility." He let his gaze linger on each person around him to be sure he was understood. "The Magician Donald, the Knight Goofy, and her majesty Queen Minnie all support me. I also have the benefit of two other friends whose opinions, just like the previous others, I trust wholeheartedly."

The man smiled thinly, tipping his head at that. "Quite a lovely answer, but you seem to have evaded my previous question." He turned his head briefly, eyes sweeping over the lanky, silver-haired teen. "Maybe I should put it another way. Some of the rumors that have been floating about are…less than desirable, I suppose one might say."

A short, stout woman with fat jewels on every one of her fingers spoke up, now. "Correct me if I am wrong, but is he not the same one who aided the witch Maleficent in her attempt to gain control of Kingdom Hearts?"

"Forgive me, madam, but please remember that this was in the past and the circumstances were a little more difficult than anyone might imagine. We were all very young and I trust Riku with every inch of my being; I trust him with my life."

"Admirable, but foolish I think." Another man spoke up, leaning against one of the tables and swirling his drink around indulgently.

"Still, Sora, you have yet to address my question. Is it true that you are having relations with the knight? A former traitor, at that? And what of your princess, does she know of thes-"

Sora's jaw was clenched, his entire body tight with tension as he willed himself to not say anything he would later regret. "Sir, I hardly think that my relationship with Kairi or Riku is anything fit for conversation." He offered a slight bow to all of them. "If you all will excuse me, I have more people to speak with. Thank you for your time."

As quickly as he could without seeming as if he were running, Sora made his way through the crowd, grateful to get lost in the mass of people. The balcony was mercifully empty as he passed a table and grabbed a glass of simple juice, making his way to the cold air and closing his eyes. Could he really do this? Could he stand all the questioning and veiled smiles? Could-

"Sora?"

Jumping slightly, Sora turned around and then relaxed when he found it was just Riku and Kairi standing there, both of them looking anxious. "Hey," he greeted lamely, accepting the warm hug from the redhead and smiling when Riku took the glass of juice and set it on the railing so Sora wouldn't drop it. "How are you two holding up?"

"Half of the girls think that the three of us 'engage in sexual activities' every night, and the other half spent the time giggling over one of you two, asking embarrassing questions and cooing at how lucky I am to know you." Kairi drew back and brushed slender fingers through her curled hair. "I didn't realize our personal lives were so interesting."

Riku was still silent, his eyes knowing as he watched Sora drag his hands through his hair and make a strangled noise of annoyance. "It's almost time for your crowning, you know, and then it's mostly over."

Kairi nodded, standing up on the tip of her toes and pressing a gentle kiss to Sora's lips. "He's right, Sora, it's almost over. I'm going to get back inside; my feet are freezing out here."

Glancing around and seeing no one was there, Sora reached out and lifted a bit of Kairi's skirt to reveal her feet- no shoes. Giggling quietly, she smacked him and tried to look offended that he had ruined her womanly virtue. "You're going to catch a cold out here if you stay any longer," Sora pointed out, gesturing to her bare shoulders. "We'll meet you inside in a few minutes."

The redhead nodded, making her way back to the bright lights of the party, pausing at the door and glancing back to the two boys, catching sight of Sora arching his back slightly, his hands tangled in Riku's silver hair. When a quiet moan met her ears and she caught a hint of tongue between the two, she turned around and headed back to the party after making sure that no one was near or heading toward the balcony.

--

Sora was tense though it was just barely noticeable- those in the crowd wouldn't have noticed, but being only a foot away from the teen, Riku was acutely aware of it. The moment the crown was placed on his head and the Keyblade was summoned with the dimly glowing golden charm, Sora turned and faced the crowd of nameless, faceless people and forced a smile on his lips, distantly aware of the cheer that went up around them.

Nearly a half hour later, Sora was sliding in through the door into his bedroom where Kairi and Riku already were. Neither one looked too happy and the brunet found he couldn't blame either of them; it had been too long of a night. "Are you two okay?" He asked, taking the crown off of his head and tossing it onto the bed without a second thought.

"They were like _harpies_." Kairi sighed, picking her legs up and curling them under her. "I was just the little island girl who happened to dress like royalty, you know? I'm just tagging along with you two, sleeping behind your backs maybe."

Feeling inexplicably bitter, Riku picked up the crown and toyed with it absently, hearing Sora struggle out of his new clothes and muttering oaths under his breath. Kairi was sitting in one of the plush chairs in the corner, her hands folded daintily in her lap and wearing her worry as if it were another layer of clothes. Shirtless, Sora turned around and tried to take the crown from Riku, startled when the older boy pulled back, his eyes unreadable. "Ri, what are you doing?"

Glancing from the crown, to Sora's bright blue eyes, and then to his own black clothes, he laughed quietly, hoping that the almost desperate little gasp at the end wasn't noticeable. His eyes flashed from his own clothes to Kairi's then and he sighed heavily, smiling at Sora in a way that had nothing to do with happiness, only holding an almost mocking tilt to his lips. "Here, your majesty," Riku murmured, placing the crown on Sora's head, not bothering to nudge it to its proper position when it fell crooked. "Your dark knight bids you and your lady a good night."

Sora drew in a startled breath, reaching out as if to stop the older boy, only to clench his outstretched hand into a ball and let it fall back to his side. Kairi stood up in a rustle of silk, unsure which teen to go to, her bottom lip drawn in-between her teeth. "Riku- Riku, wait!" Kairi looked back at the brunet teen and scrambled after Riku, her bare feet slapping quietly against the polished marble.

'_Your majesty.'_ His mind played those two words over and over in his mind, each time coming from a different person that he had met that night, though none held the loathing and the anger that Riku's words had held. Perhaps, this was the fate of the Keyblade master, he thought with a choked out noise of anger. "Bastard," he choked out, unsure of if he was talking to himself or to Riku. Jaw still clenched, Sora reached up and grabbed the crown in his hand, throwing it against the wall as hard as he could. A moment later he was falling to his knees, hating how he felt like he was about to cry as everything fell apart around him.

_...and start to feel mortality surround me  
I close my eyes and think that I have found me  
But life inside the music box ain't easy   
The malots hit the gears are always turning  
And every one inside the mechanism  
Is yearning to get out  
Is yearning to get out  
Is yearning to get out_.

-End-

Sup, angst? Sup, 15 pages? Still don't own.

I'm really, really happy with the way this came out. It was a spur of the moment thing and it makes me just ecstatic that it turned out the way it did. Hopefully, you guys liked it; drop me a line if you did, or even if you didn't:)


	2. Of Mistaken Identities

**Rating**: PG-13/T for this chapter, next chapter is R  
**Word Count**: 5763  
**Summary**: Riku hates Andalasia. And squirrels. And princes who think he's a girl, but dresses most of all.  
**Notes**: Takes place after Music Box, no specific place in the timeline yet.  
Thank you so much to **salve** on ljfor betaing this for me so very quickly. I'm not sure when part two will be out, because I've got other projects going, but I'll try for soon-ish.

Everyone should note that, after it was brought to my attention, it made far more sense for this to be a second and then third chapter when it came to Music Box. Since these take place a few weeks/a month after the end of Music Box, it is pretty much a direct cut straight to the next part of the plot. To those of you who read this earlier, it's the same fic, lol. If you're interested in reading the fics in order, I would look at the list below. You don't need to read them to understand this, however.

Mermaids and Legends / Hero / Drawings / Best Left Forgotten / Not Quite Heartless / Down The Rabbit Hole / Erasing Memories / To An End / The Things He Would Never Say / Fairy Tale / Sets of Three / Music Box

00

"It's simple, Nathaniel," Narissa cooed, petting his hair as she circled around him, hiding her vaguely disgusted look behind his back with each turn, as he sniffled and practically purred at her attention. "Just…get rid of that wretched little Princess. Find her, give her our. Little. Present," and she punctuated this with little ruffles of his hair, her voice a low purr. "And come back to me."

"Y-yes, m'lady, of course," Nathaniel murmured, trying to sweep a bow and kneel at the same time, caught in the middle, unable to decide which one he wanted to do and nearly tripping in the end, not noticing the woman's eyeroll at it. "R-right away m'lady!" And he started to skitter off for the exit, so very eager to do right.

"Nathaniel," she called after a moment, voice oh so dry. "Forgetting the apples? You've no idea just how hard it was to get them shipped here, after all."

He paused, flushing splotchy red and stumbled back to her, taking the apples she offered and running out of the castle, past an eighteen-year-old Edward who just gave him a confused look and started singing again, the obnoxious little brat. Rolling his eyes, he didn't bother to listen to the song about "his hope, his wish for his one true love", and just kept going, intent on finding this "Princess".

00

"…Sora."

There was no answer, just the rustle of grass as Sora and Kairi kept walking.

"Sora," Riku tried again, running after him and Kairi. "Sora, that squirrel was staring at me with its beady little eyes and I think it talked."

Sora flashed a grin at him, taking his hand with a little snicker and walking through the field of multi-colored flowers. "Was this the same squirrel that threw a nut at your head when you said you couldn't stand 'the furry little rats'?" he asked with a snicker, Kairi grinning at them both as she remembered it. "The poor little guy looked heartbroken that you didn't like him."

Glaring at Sora flatly, whatever response he had was cut off when the brunet leaned up and kissed him with another snicker, holding both his and Kairi's hand still. "Come on, we're almost to the Castle, and that's where Mickey said he thought the Keyhole is, and we've still gotta get costumes for the ball," Sora said while tugged on both of them, far too excited to be going to this. "It'll be like the dance we missed our last year of school and I'll get to dance with both of you!" Sora beamed at them both, far too pleased with this for Riku's liking as they headed into the quaint little town, passing by a pole that was plastered with want ads and other things.

"…he looks constipated," Riku muttered, staring at a picture of a man wanted for robberies around the small world. "Seriously, this artist was—"

"Riku, let's goooo," Sora said, tugging him past the pole and into town.

"…Are you sure you don't want two bedrooms?" the innkeeper said with an attempt at a smile, holding up two room keys and swinging them back and forth. "I'd…even give them to you for a discounted price, as she's a lady and all."

Riku stifled a snort, amusing himself with lifting their suitcases and waiting while Sora argued with the innkeeper and Kairi flushed a bright red at their conversation.

"It's fine, sir, really," Sora said for the sixth time, his smile a little strained around the edges. "We'll take one room, and…if it'll make you feel better, do you have one with two beds? Linalie, ah, she's my sister. …And ah, Walter here, he's our cousin."

Looking all too relieved, the innkeeper nodded his bald, shiny little head furiously. So very pleased with this situation, he said that he'd order a second bed put in free of charge, just for the pretty lady, while Riku just smirked at Kairi, far too amused with the whole situation. Soon enough they were lead up the creaky stairs, into a decent-sized bedroom with two beds, and a couch.

Once the innkeeper collected their money, Sora just stared a moment and then put their things down, pushing the right bed against the left and forming a rather large bed, with a gleeful little smirk. "I call this bed!" he said with a grin, and flopped on it, not surprised when Kairi joined him a moment later, cuddling next to him and then staring expectantly at Riku. "…Ri," he murmured, rolling onto his back, moving so there was room enough for him in the middle.

"Riku," Kairi echoed, frowning a bit and patting the space between them, blatant as she could get without dragging him over and sitting on him, something she'd really actually thought about. It took a few moments, ridiculously long moments, in her mind, but he eventually locked the door and walked over, footsteps hesitant, crawling onto the bed and allowing them both to hug him as tightly as they wished.

It was Sora, he knew, who was rubbing his shoulders gently, sliding his hands under the loose material of his shirt and just skimming, exploring all that warm, soft skin. Kairi's hands were softer, playing with his hair as she always liked to do, a small, soft smile on her lips as she just kept doing it, watching him.

"Thank you," she murmured, kissing his forehead and just laughing quietly as the small amount of lipstick she wore rubbed off on his forehead. "For trying. Really." Another kiss, this time on his lips, while Sora watched, more hesitant than she was.

He remembered far too well why Riku had left them in the first place. While he hadn't "dumped" them, exactly, he had given them both a near-silent treatment, absolutely short to the point of being rude, until Kairi had just given up and socked him right in the cheek, scolding him, and then gave him ice to put on it. Sora had asked who'd beat him up, so that he could beat them up, and promptly collapsed into snickers as Riku's just pointed to a blushing Kairi, clearly not as amused as Sora.

"So…" Sora started, strong fingers massaging Riku's shoulders firmly as they all laid there. "It's gonna be really hard to be able to get anywhere if we have to fight like we did with that innkeeper. I mean, it was nice he was worried, but what if they don't let us all into the party? Or…or I dunno, I just…." He huffed out a sigh, tucking his head under Riku's chin and pressing closer against him, annoyed. "I just wanna find this keyhole and get home. I don't like leaving the Castle for so long. Even a day seems too long."

Kairi hummed quietly, nodding and understanding. "Goofy and Donald know how to handle the place. They've done it before, and Minnie is helping them too. Don't worry so much." And she hugged Riku gently, sighing. "We really need to go into town and see if we can get costumes made for the ball. I'm a little hungry, too."

Yawning, Sora nodded, tilting Riku's head down and kissing him lightly, expression meaningful, and pulled back and off the bed, fingers running through his hair quickly to straighten it. "Did anyone else find it kind of weird this place didn't…I dunno, seem to know who we were? Not to sound arrogant, just…" he shrugged a bit, not quite sure what to say about the whole thing. On one hand it was nice to not be bowed down to everywhere he went, on the other hand, the representative that was sent from Andalasia should have informed the rest of their world what was going on, who was the new king, all that kind of thing.

"Mn, we'll check it out on Friday," Riku murmured, tossing Sora his pouch of munny and snagging the key to their room while they all put their shoes on. "I'm just curious as to how we're going to get into this ball so very late."

Kairi glanced up at him, blinking. "…You didn't know? Apparently since I'm a Princess, I got however many invitations I wanted or needed. I guess some the other Princesses might be there, too, even." She combed her own fingers through her hair, while Sora pocketed the things, glancing up at the tallest of them, and frowning when she realized that he looked…hurt.

Head tilting to the side, she tried to figure out what on earth could have upset him, and then realized that it was probably them having not told him their plans. Which, she thought, was justifiable, but at the same time, they didn't have to walk on these eggshells before. Now it seemed like everything they did could be taken in a bad way or done wrong, or just…. "It slipped my mind, Riku," Kairi finally said, coming up and hugging him, taking the fall for this one. "I didn't tell Sora either."

Thankfully, Sora was behind Riku, so his look of pure confusion (that probably would have given him away instantly and revealed he had indeed known) was hidden.

Riku's arms came up around her, holding her gently and he gave a careless shrug, pretending like he hadn't been bothered. "Not like you have to tell me everything," he murmured, and then released her so that they could go, filing out the door one by one and locking it behind them.

00

Andalasia, Kairi decided, was the cutest little world ever. Somehow she'd acquired three birds and a squirrel that decided to ride on her shoulders and chirp (or chitter) merrily along as they walked, and no one even gave them a second look. Sora had thankfully managed to stifle his laughter after the second bird, but Riku kept shooting them careful looks like he expected their feathers and fur to poof away and Heartless to be in their place.

"You should name them," Sora said helpfully as they ducked into a little shop, the animals either jumping or flying up to wait for her as they looked around. "I mean if they're gonna follow you around and all, maybe you should?"

Kairi just grinned at him from where she was looking at spices, picking out a few that she knew that the palace's cooks were either missing or had probably not heard of. "I wouldn't know what to name them, either way, Sora," she answered, now skimming through some pretty jewelry for her personal assistant/handmaiden/perhaps overly helpful but very well-meaning friend. "Did it sound like they're talking, sometimes? I….mean I know it sounds funny, but."

"I don't know why you'd be surprised," Riku commented, checking out some fresh fruits and picking certain ones out, sticking them in the little sacks that were provided for that very purpose. "You've met talking teapots, talking squirrels, talking mice, ducks, dogs, lamps. The only thing that you haven't met and probably won't, is a talking fire." And content in his knowledge that fire couldn't talk, he kept on shopping.

_And a year later, in the future, Kairi was all too glad to remind Riku of Calcifer._

_"Me? I'm Calcifer!" the little flame explained as he bounced and popped merrily through the mouthful of firewood._

_Riku promptly ignored Kairi's grin, and just rolled his eyes at, "Never gonna meet a talking fire, hmmmm?"_

Silent for a while, the three continued to shop, skimming this and that, picking up little things for their friends like they did in every world they traveled to. When they were finished they paid and left, and Kairi's furry or feathered ornaments returned, chattering and chirping away once more.

"Go left," Riku said suddenly, nudging Sora into Kairi and pushing them off onto the other side of the cobblestone road, ignoring the confused looks the two gave him. "There's some guy singing and pulling everyone that passes to sing with him. Not happening."

Snickering, Sora just took Riku's hand, squeezing it gently, rather pleased when he watched the tension melt out of Riku's body at that proud bit of contact—the proof that none of them minded being with him, or loving him. "You don't like singing?" he asked with a wicked little grin, nudging Riku to him teasingly. "I think you'd do great there. Everyone bursts out randomly into song – you'd fit right in!"

"…Ooh, hey, the costume store!" Kairi said, interrupting whatever dry remark Riku had planned for Sora, tugging them both in while the animals went to the roof again. Inside was a nearly overwhelming rush of colors, feathers and beads everywhere. While she went to go talk to the seamstress, Riku pulled Sora aside, frowning.

"S'wrong, Ri?" Sora murmured, just tugging him out of the store instead, hands sliding up to brush through Riku's hair, concerned.

Leaning into those touches, Riku just gave a frustrated shrug and sigh that melted into a confused noise as something started rubbing between his legs, circling around his ankles. He glanced down, ignoring Sora's little laugh, and slowly knelt, scratching its head gently and frowning.

"Animals are awfully friendly here, aren't they?" he murmured, a little amused at how it started purring loudly, rubbing itself up against him harder, licking his wrist. "But…what I was going to say was…what if we don't get let into the party? I mean. You saw how much trouble it is to get a room at an inn, and she's….well, she's a Princess of Heart. It's going to be really difficult to get around if we're constantly turned away because we're "corrupting" her or something."

Frowning in return, Sora leaned against the side of the building, watching Riku pet the kitten gently. "So what do you suggest we do?" he asked finally, not sure what they could do.

"There you guys ar—oh my god a kitten."

With Sora dying of laughter in the background, Riku just rolled his eyes and watched Kairi start petting the little gray cat, cooing at it. "The uh, assistant in there had a suggestion when she found out that two guys would be escorting me," she said, picking the little cat up and rubbing its stomach, amused.

"What?" Riku asked sarcastically, watching the two. "Does she think I should dress up too?"

Head tilting to the side, Kairi paused. "…How'd you know?"

"No."

"Riku, listen, it's for a night. No one even knows you're here, or who you are here," Sora attempted, dressed in a tuxedo with a matching mask, while the seamstress pinned and fixed what didn't fit correctly, smacking his thigh lightly when he squirmed as she touched a ticklish part. "They might not let us in, so…"

Still holding the kitten, a piece of long ribbon in his fingers as he dangled it in front of him (her? He couldn't tell), Riku frowned more. "Why am I the female automatically, I look perfectly masculine."

There was a moment of silence, where Riku waited. And waited. And waited, for some kind of defense, like, "Oh yes, Riku, god, you're so very, very manly and masculine you just ooze everything that makes up man!"

"…well," Kairi said, coming up behind him and draping her arms around his neck, her chin resting on his shoulders as she watched Sora try to hold back laughter. "You've got long enough hair, even if it was put up, and with a little make-up—"

"Make-up?" Riku hissed, and no that wasn't his voice cracking, because he was nineteen, and nineteen-year-old's voices didn't crack. "Kairi! You don't even wear make-up!"

The seamstress paused her pinning for a moment, a hand held over her mouth while she giggled, ignoring Riku's glare at all of them as he sulked. He would never call it sulking, of course- he didn't sulk after all. He glowered, glared, frowned and was generally testy, but no, sulking was for children and he was no child.

"Riku. Look at me," Sora said, a trace of humor leaving his voice as he stared down at Riku, wishing that they were at the same height—he knew that Riku might take this badly, because lately he seemed to take everything badly when it came to who did what in their relationship. "We have to get into the party. The only other alternative is leaving you back in the inn for the night and Kairi and I going. But if we do that, then where is my right hand? Where are you going to be if something happens and we need you? It's for a night."

Riku stared right back, the kitten in his lap curled up and purring quietly, his eyes narrow and face blank, oh so blank. Behind him, Kairi closed her eyes, resting her cheek on his shoulder and resisting the urge to say anything as the seamstress got back to work, trying to make herself as small as possible so she was out of the crossfire. "Fine, highness," he muttered finally, standing up after nudging Kairi's arms off, picking the kitten up and holding it gently, letting it gnaw on the ribbon as he headed out.

Flinching visibly, Sora's hands clenched into fists, yelping as he was stuck by one of the pins when he moved too much. "Kairi…? Was I—"

"He needs to stop," Kairi murmured, glancing out the door and exhaling slowly. "He needs to get over this, because it's too much and it's hurting us just as much. I'm going to go find him."

Sora just nodded, closing his eyes and breathing deeply, letting the woman finish sewing and adjusting, sinking into his own mind to find Roxas.

00

"Riku!"

Kairi sped up, running as fast as she could to catch up to the glint of silver hair that was lost among the swell of people skimming along the market place, picking up her dress and cursing the changes that this world brought- she hated wearing long dresses. "Riku, come—"

Kairi blinked, realizing that her dress was suddenly much easier to carry, and glanced back, finding that three of the birds that had been following them had picked up the back of it and were carrying it for her while she ran. Smiling her thanks, she picked up her pace and grabbed his arm as soon as she could, wondering how he had gotten so far so fast. "Riku."

"I messed up again," Riku murmured, taking a sharp right and letting her follow, leaving the busy main street to one of the smaller, darker ones, shaded with ivy growing from the arches of the buildings. "I know it."

Tugging on him hard, she jerked him close and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, cheek resting on his chest while she regained her breath. The animals were watching them curiously, Riku's new kitten curling and nuzzling their ankles gently and then amusing itself with playing with the edges of Kairi's dress, clawing the hem playfully. "Riku," Kairi started, not resisting when he leaned against a wall and tugged her close, stroking her hair gently with a sigh. "Riku look at me."

He obeyed after a moment, face as blank as he could make it, and he knew by the look on her face that she wasn't buying any of it. "Mn," he answered quietly, eyes going wide when she curled a hand in his hair and kissed him hard, pushing him back against the wall. Surprise didn't even begin to describe how he felt- Kairi was normally the sweet, gentle kisser, not—

"I know you like how hard Sora kisses you," she murmured against his mouth after one final nip to his lip, once they were done, still a bit breathless from the run and from the kiss. "Listen to me, okay?"

When she was sure he was listening and not contemplating kissing her to shut her up, she continued. "We need you. I know you don't think it or believe it or even seem to know it, but we need you. Sora needs you, Riku. You're his knight, his right hand, his—" she cut herself off, dragging in a slow, heavy breath. "Please. Okay, look at me. I say this because I love you and him, not because I want to be mean, but stop. You're being selfish and immature. I understand that you don't want to be in a dress, but we've all done things that we didn't want to do. Sora doesn't want to be king, but he has to. And you're upset because of one night in a dress?"

Riku said nothing for a long moment, just staring at her with his blank face and then exhaled slowly, kissing her as gently as he could. "Stop always being right," he murmured into the kiss, drawing in a sharp breath when she was daring, biting his bottom lip gently and then smiling at him, her cheeks flushed. "I'm. I'm sorry. It's just. I don't-"

"Riku." Kairi tilted his chin up a little bit, sighing quietly. "I know you don't want to. Just. No one has to know. Okay? No one has to know it's you. We can say that you're back in the castle watching it, or that you're sick or that—"

"Don't. Move."

Kairi blinked, watching Riku's face slide from almost depressed to angry in a matter of seconds, his hands tight on her shoulders. "…wha-"

"Lady, don't move, I said," the voice growled and then something sharp was pressed to her back—a sword, she realized with a frown, eyes still fixed on Riku's as they stood there. "Alright, now get your boyfriend to reach and grab me that money pouch."

"…Ri, we're being robbed," Kairi said with a barely withheld smile, keeping her hands on his hips, stroking them gently, actually amused. She only flinched a little when the sword pressed harder, actually breaking skin, but the would-be robber stopped and just held it there.

Below their knees, the kitten was hissing and spitting at the robber, its back arched and tail puffed out. On the rooftops, the birds and squirrels were chattering and chirping away, wings ruffled up, clearly displeased. "Give the nice man what he- ow--!" Unable to hold back the flinch as he dug it in a bit more, she gritted her teeth, realizing that no doubt Riku and Sora would worry their heads off after seeing it, even if it was a small prick. "Listen, I'm getting you the stupid pouch."

"Hurry up!" the robber muttered, waving a hand while Riku just glared at him, carefully reaching for the pouch while Kairi reached for Riku's. It took just a glance and a quirk of Kairi's lips for them to decide, moving quickly. Riku stepped to the side, just as Kairi pressed forward, ignoring the way that blade caught on her dress and sliced it more. Instead, she focused on spinning and casting a quick blizzard, knocking the man back against the wall. Three more were cast in quick succession to encase his chest and forearms fully, sword dropping to the ground. "Let me go!"

Head cocked to the side, Kairi just watched him for a moment, trying to figure out where she knew him from, then it clicked. "Oh, Ri, he's from the wanted poster," she said, watching the robber's eyes widen as he stood there. "D'you mind summoning a portal? I think it'd be awfully nice if we just dropped him right in front of his own sign so the proper authorities could take care of him." All of it was said with a saccharine-sweet voice while she watched him carefully, ignoring his protests of "No, no, there's no need, I won't do it again, I--!"

Whatever else he was going to say was cut off as one of the birds that had been following them since their arrival promptly turned, and released its bowels all over his shoulder. A moment later, the rest of the birds were following, leaving Riku and Kairi to stare and the robber to make pathetic little noises of protest. Lastly, the kitten pranced over, lifting a leg and peeing on his shoe, hissing once and then prancing back to Riku, nuzzling his legs and purring.

"A portal it is," Riku said dryly over the muffled, startled laughter of Kairi, waving a hand lazily and ripping the space behind the robber open, pushing him back and into it, half encased in ice. Closing it with another flick of his wrist, he turned back to Kairi, expression no longer irritated, but worried. "Let me see," he murmured, watching her carefully. "Did he actually cut you?"

"He cut my bra," she muttered, fiddling with her breasts, scowling darkly as she fought to slide the straps down her arms and just take it off- it was ruined anyway, and only made her chest look lumpy. Once it was in her hands, she smiled innocently at Riku and took two steps closer. "Here, handsome, hold onto it for me?" Kairi purred, tucking it into the pocket of his jacket, unable to hold back a shiver at the way his eyes darkened, flicking from her eyes to her breasts.

"That's not fair," he rasped quietly, reaching out and cupping her waist, hands sliding up and thumbs ghosting ever so gently against the bottom curves of her breasts, the natural elasticity of the dress keeping it from being too obvious she was now braless. Aside from the cut in the back of her dress, she realized a moment later, frowning more. "Let me see, Kairi."

Sighing, she obeyed, knowing he would make her show him sooner or later. "It looks worse than it feels, I bet," she murmured, listening to him draw in a breath and touch her back lightly, fingers coming away slick with blood. It wasn't a very large scrape- just maybe an inch or two long, and deep enough to draw blood from when he'd pressed the sword in, but it still made Riku grit his teeth and tug off his jacket to drape it over her shoulders to hide the hole at least.

"Riku, c'mere," Kairi ordered, taking his hand after kneeling down and picking up the kitten, rubbing its belly gently and cooing at it for being so brave. "This wasn't your fault. It was a mockery of a robber anyway. It's a tiny cut, so – Riku look at me."

Scowling, he turned his eyes back to her, jaw set at a stubborn tilt. "I am."

"Then listen too. This isn't your fault. I'm fine. Now repeat that it isn't your fault and that I'm fine, and that you're gonna look fantastic in a dress." Kairi beamed up at him, noticing the way he visibly eased, like a hint of tension melted out of him, and just kissed his cheek. "C'mon, we gotta go back to Sora."

00

_You're surprised that he threw a fit_, Roxas murmured inside their mind, sprawled out on what Sora had come to realize was Roxas' old bed from Twilight Town. That small, comfortably cluttered room had become their meeting place the more they talked while inside Sora's head._ You know Riku's sensitive about some things. Why does this surprise you so much?_

'…I don't know, Rox,' Sora answered, crawling onto the bed with the blond and flopping down, his head in Roxas' lap. 'It's just a stupid dress. If I had to, I'd do it, but it's something that we need him to do. It's stupid, but.'

Silent for a long time, Roxas just fingered a few spikes gently. _Riku's a complicated, bitchy brat, Sora. You know that. Even though you guys turn into huge girls when you see each other, he still isn't….I dunno. He's a social retard. Maybe you guys could keep him locked up in the castle and use him as a side-show attraction. The magical social retard, here three days only_.

Muffling his snickering into Roxas' thigh, Sora pinched the blond's forearm gently, shoulders shaking. 'I'm sure that he would just love that. It's just that like…it's almost like we're babysitting him sometimes. He gets so sensitive about some things and it's hard to tell what's going to set him off or-'

_…Sora. Think about who you are talking about here, okay? Like, seriously, think. Because everyone, including Kairi, knows that he's emotionally retarded. Actually, change that to just retarded._ Roxas snorted, tugging harder on that bit of hair and sighing quietly a moment later. _He loves you two, even if he's too dumb to do anything about it, and you're too dumb to remember. Kairi's the only smart one out of the three of you._

Insulted but amused, Sora jerked his head up and made a face, tongue stuck out. 'I'm sure Riku loves you too, Rox. Just like you loooove hi—'

The seamstress jumped as Sora toppled off of the stool he was standing on and fell onto the ground with a groan, her eyes wide. It looked like someone had pushed him, but it was just her and the brunet in the room, so…

"…Did you piss off Roxas?" Riku asked dryly from the doorway, his arm wrapped tightly around Kairi's waist, with Kairi just smiling wryly. Sora groaned as his answer, pushing himself up and gritting his teeth, getting back on the stool. The seamstress, bless her heart, just made sure Sora was okay and wisely went back to pinning, not commenting on anything else.

Brushing himself off, Sora rolled his eyes and yelped when the seamstress poked his hip, warning him to not move anymore. "…are you two okay?" he asked quietly, glancing up at the two with wide eyes, questioning. Glancing from Riku's narrowed eyes to Kairi's carefully innocent face, he frowned even more, not sure what it was that he had missed. "...No one died, right?"

Both Kairi and Riku shook their heads, the girl scooping Riku's kitten out of his arms and petting it, grinning when it started to bat at her fingers with its paws. "We ran into that robber we saw on the wanted poster," Kairi explained, not needing to see Sora to know that he had tensed up, and glared at Riku. "It wasn't a big--"

"He cut Kairi," Riku finished, slitting his eyes at Kairi, not pleased with her trying to minimize what could have turned out to be something far more serious. Kairi glared right back, hissing as the kitten caught her hand with its sharp claws. "We got rid of him, but-"

"Kairi's fine," Sora said quietly, that frown still on his face, lifting his arms as instructed by the still-silent seamstress. "Riku, you don't need to worry so much; you two made it back in one piece, so it's okay..."

That's not the point! Riku wanted to shout, but kept it bottled up until they were away from the woman, not wanting her to hear anymore of their relationship woes than she already had. "Yeah," Riku muttered, tying up his hair in a loose ponytail and leaning against the wall as the seamstress finished, patting Sora's shoulder. "We should go get food," he said finally, as Sora took his turn petting and playing with the kitten and Kairi spoke quietly with the seamstress.

"Riku..." Sora murmured, looking up at him with a sigh, shaking his head.

"She's going to measure me next," Kairi called, looking over at them with a wave. "Bring me back something?"

Nodding, Sora gave a bow, kissing Kairi's hand and grinning up at her. "As m'lady wishes, so shall it be," he said, faking an aristocratic voice, laughing in the middle of it as he dragged Riku out.

"They're...an interesting pair," the seamstress said carefully, measuring and humming quietly as she wrote them down, handing Kairi a bottom layer to try on, turning so the girl had privacy. "Which one is your lovely suitor?"

In the middle of stripping off the dress, Kairi paused, wondering what to say; it was a different world, so they might not be as accepting of something so weird by even their world's standards. "Both," she said quietly, smiling a little bit, feeling better instantly at having said it. "Both are."

The older woman just smiled, helping her into the new material, pinning what didn't fit right. "It's good that you aren't afraid to say it," she said quietly, a pin held between her teeth. "Love like that is hard to come by, and harder to keep."

A smile lighting up her face, Kairi nodded. "It's worth it though."

00

Nathaniel scowled, adjusting his drooping hat over his face as he observed, watching the brunet brat and his princess walk down the street, holding hands. Honestly, this was just a pain to watch. But, Narissa had ordered it and what Narissa ordered, he did, with a smile on his face and a bounce in his step, as his Mistress had demanded nothing else. The girl seemed to walk oddly though; and she was so very tall, which struck him as a bit strange.

"...Nathaniel, whatever are you doing here?"

Very nearly dropping everything that he held in his hands, Nathaniel whirled around, scowling at the sight of Edward, a hand on the pommel of his sword, back straight, eyebrow raised. "Out looking for potential princesses for me, yet again, dear friend? How many times do I have to tell you, I'm looking for my one true love, not--"

Edward paused, eyes fixing on a glint of silver in the distance, squinting and frowning a little as he tried to see, and then--

"My God, Nathaniel, look!" He grabbed the man's arm, pointing at the silver-haired Goddess who was currently examining apples. "Nathaniel, I've found her, I've found her! It's love at first sight!"

Nathaniel let out a weak noise, croaking and just staring, wondering just how much trouble he would be in for this.

Off by the apples, Riku sneezed, and wondered who was talking about him.

00

Any comments are love. Long comments make me wiggle happily. :3 I hope you guys enjoyed, haha. It's been a while since I posted here.


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